The Regalis Pavor Spectaculum
by Cececat
Summary: About 1,932 years BEFORE the Denton Affair, something oddly similar occurred. This 'something' even involved some of the same people. One of those people happens to be a certain royal who seems to think he's a God no matter the century. (Please Read & Review!)
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own _The Rocky Horror Picture Show_**

 **A/N: So I was thinking about the idea of the Transylvanians being immortal and only ever able to be killed by 'a beam of pure antimatter'. That made me decide to write a story that takes place in the first century AD about Frank and everyone infiltrating the Ancient Roman Government. He doesn't just resemble Caligula... he _is_ Caligula!**

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 _The bitter memory of Caligula and his equally nasty predecessor Tiberius was still fresh in everyone's minds. Rumors about Caligula having not having died – that a double died in his place – still were whispered at private dinner parties. These rumors were not truly unrealistic because nobody had been there – save for the Guard, and they're really quiet about such things – to witness the assassination. Rome being the sort of, it's not impossible for such a thing to occur._

 _Though this tale isn't just about the government. It's about a perfectly ordinary Roman girl and how she befriended a strange stranger… and how this friendship changed her life._

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It was a lovely afternoon in June. A young woman called Pomponia Lollia was sitting in the garden of her family's lovely house. There she was writing a story on some scraps of paper her Father, a consul named Gaius Pomponius Secundus, found for her. The story, of course, wasn't completely original. No, it happened to be based on a play by her uncle Publius Pomponius Secundus that she'd seen earlier that very week.

It is said that a Roman girl must learn to be quite clever if she's to marry into a good family. Though Lollia was too busy daydreaming to think of that. She just _enjoyed_ writing the stories.

Things by Uncle Publius were always very depressing and Lollia felt the need to correct this. It was a flaw in her eyes. No play should be sad, even the tragedies. She told her tutor Drakon this once. Of course he disagreed.

Yet that didn't stop Lollia from rewriting those endings. It cheered her up, entertained her…

So of course she was annoyed when Cia – a Britannic slave captured as a small child in Caesar's 54AD invasion and later sold to the Pomponia family, technically named Boadicia – called her inside.

"Your mother says you mustn't be out here in the sun too long," Cia explained. "It'll ruin your complexion."

Lollia rolled her eyes. "Don't be silly. I'm sitting in the shade!"

"Your mother _also_ said that your father is home from and wants to speak to you."

That was more serious. Lollia's father was a well-liked man named Gaius Pomponius Secundus who was by the time of this tale a praetor. He'd avoided that _horrid_ scandal in 31AD involving that ambitious fiend Sejanus by being on campaign at the time.

He was very lucky in that respect. If it hadn't been for his marriage to Lollia Claudia being planned for 25AD he would've been finished with his mandatory decade of military service by that point.

For some reason Gaius didn't usually speak directly to his own daughter (Lollia). Instead he let the servants or his wife talk to the girl. It was probably because he was too busy with his work.

So this most likely meant trouble.

Rather nervously, Lollia set her story and pen down on the bench she'd been sitting on. Then she walked right into the house. Because of the building's floorplan, this meant she ended up in a hallway. This hallway led right into the Atrium.

There here Father stood looking rather worried. Another person – a woman, judging by clothes – stood nearby. The person was apparently hiding in the shadows cast by the many expensive statues Claudia had decorated the room with. Not that it really worked…

Gaius smiled, though nervously. "Lollia, my dear, this here is Laurentia. I need you to take her up your bedroom for a while. Read her one of your stories or something."

"Father, why-"

He shook a finger at her. "Don't ask questions! I must go back to work now, before people notice I'm away."

Then, he left the room (and the house). After the two young women had stood there in silence for a moment, Lollia decided to say something:

"So, Laurentia-"

"Don't call me that, please," the girl said softly. "I never use that name, haven't in _years_. Call me Flora."

"Oh," Lollia said, not sure what else to say. "My name is Lollia."

Laurentia – or, as she shall be now referred to as, Flora – laughed. "I figured that one out myself."

Again, there was silence. Neither of them knew much about the other. Flora still stood in the shadows so Lollia could hardly see her. It was strange to the both of them. Now, Lollia knew that scandals happened far too often in Rome. There were specific rules about it all. If a wife committed adultery an honor-suicide might have to happen. When one betrayed their country and is to be executed, walking into one's sword is a better option than just letting them hang you! Rome was a very political city, a very _dangerous_ city.

Hiding things in one's house – especially living things – wasn't a good sign. It meant something bad was going on. Lollia really needed to ask Flora what was going on. Though probably somewhere private where no slaves could overhear.

"Flora? Why don't we go up my room, like my Father said."

Luckily, Flora didn't seem too bothered by this. She followed Lollia out of the room and up the stairs without a word. It made her look like she was used to doing as she was told. Her obedient reaction to orders given was instinctual, like a well-trained slave!

This shocked Lollia because Flora looked like any old Roman citizen. She hadn't realized it until Flora had stepped into the light, yet now it was so very obvious.

Lollia _knew_ that Romans don't behave like that. No, only fools taken from their grubby huts in Germania should behave that way. Romans weren't ordered around, they ordered other people around.

Of course, asking Flora to go to Lollia's room wasn't much of an order. Lollia hoped that this odd girl wouldn't behave like this all the time.

When they reached the room Lollia entered first. It was her room after all. The brief look of confusion upon Flora's face made things even odder to Lollia. She kept herself from saying anything through.

"Flora?" Lollia said

"Hmm?" the girl replied

"Can you explain everything? Why you're here, who you are...?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I'd better start from the way beggining. I have a feeling you won't believe a word of the second half. Well, it started a few years ago...

"I was 17 years old. Then I still lived with my parents, of course. Father was a baker and Mother was a midwife. Even though we were working class. Then I met Tita Annia. She was a highly attractive young woman of 19 years. As the child of a slave girl called Adelina and a nobleman named Riff Raff Vitus Flavius she was a bit of a rebel. For some reason she wasn't a slave. Though she did work for her father - as a cook. Since I was the nearby baker's daughter I often delivered bread to that house. It was then that Annia took a liking to me.

"The first time I properly spoke to her - that is, about something that wasn't business - it was about her Father. She told me about her family, I spoke of mine. Far too soon I took a liking to her. Once I'd explained how I felt, she wasn't pleased. So I ran away, wandering both city and countryside. After about a year of that I met a man named Gaius. He flirted, joked. Something about him was just so... charming. After he took me to the games and lunch he brought me to the palace. It turns out that the man I'd met was Imperator Caligula."

"Ye Gods... you knew _him_?" Lollia gasped.

"Pardon my Greek, but I fucked him," Flora replied. "I think that's enough story for now."

Lollia heartily agreed.

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	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own _The Rocky Horror Picture Show_**

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 **A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews, FireandBloodandKittens and Little Collie Lovett. **

**Also, I'm sorry if Lollia's intense patriotism (to put it nicely) gets annoying. When I write her dialogue it just... happens. I suppose such racism/classism is the natural result of growing up in such a world.**

 **By the way, 'Eadgard' is an ancient Germanic form of Edward. Since Eddie is probably a shortened form of Edward I decided that the 'Roman stand-in' for Eddie would be called Eadgard. He's a bit of a cheap little punk even in this story, as evidenced by historically accurate cursing.**

 **And I've started using the Latin words for 'Father' and 'Mother'. Hopefully that's okay.**

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Only a few moments later there was a knocking at the door.

Quickly, Lollia stood up. As if waiting for a new order to be spoken Flora sat there patiently. Though she seemed to suddenly be at attention, like a well-trained dog. Not a Roman, a _dog_. This upset Lollia quite a bit. Though she ignored this vile emotion and carefully opened the door.

There stood a slave. It wasn't one Lollia knew the name of.

"What is it?" Lollia asked.

"Miss, your tutor is here," the slave explained.

"Drakon? But I thought Pater sent him away for the day!"

"He isn't here for teaching it seems. There's a young man with him too. Now, he says won't go away until you've spoken to him."

Lollia sighed dramatically. "Standards are going down, I think. Slaves doing whatever they want! Despite him being very clever – a Greek, according to his papers – he still belongs to Pater. He's a _slave_. A slave can't order us around. I have more rights, you know. Pater and Mater are both citizens so I am to. Since I'm a girl I can't hold public office… but I'm still a Roman!"

"It still might be something important," Flora pointed out.

There really wasn't anything else to do. Lollia knew there wasn't a reason not to and that this – whatever it was – might be important.

"Fine, then," she muttered.

Then she followed the slave downstairs. Flora followed her, of course. At that point Drakon happened to be in the atrium. There he sat with a young man. The young man seemed to recognize Flora… and vice versa.

"Eadgard!" she cried.

"Flora, what're ya doing here?" he asked.

"That's exactly what I was about to ask you…"

Then, Drakon cleared his throat. "I'd better explain… this won't be easy. You see, this boy… Eadgard… happens to be my nephew. He also is a lover of the imperator commonly known as Little Caliga."

Lollia's eyes widened in horror, Flora rolled hers at the theatricality.

"I have a feeling that the _ex_ -imperator Gaius survived, though goes by a different name now. I've got more than enough evidence by now."

"He… he's _alive_?" Flora said, shocked.

"Why, of course. He's perfectly fine and living almost anonymously in the countryside," Drakon replied.

"How do you know this?" asked Lollia.

To everybody's surprise, Eadgard answered. "'Cause I was at his house until a few days ago. He sent me back here to the city to look for Flora. Says he missed ya, he does. Wants ta see you again," Eadgard said solemnly. "An' ya can't disobey a God. He's a God, you know. So I'm supposed ta bring you back. By Juno's twat, I don't want you to have to go back. But you've got to, Flora."

Flora sighed wearily. "Eddie… I've just gotten to safety. Can't we just run away together and leave him?"

"I'm missing something, aren't I?" Lollia muttered.

"I'll explain some other time. For now, I'd just better take Flora back to this Master of hers," Drakon said with a sigh.

"But what do I tell Pater?"

Flora raised an eyebrow. "Who says that you're going with us?"

Lollia didn't have an answer to that. It seemed the right thing to do, somehow. Not to mention it would probably be very fun to visit the countryside. A Change of scenery always did her good. Anyway, she often visited her family's villa in the summer. A moment later she found herself scribbling a note about staying at her family's villa for a while. Surely her Father wouldn't mind too much.

After packing up a number of items – mainly clothes – she called for Cia.

"I'm going on a little vacation to the countryside. Give this letter to Pater when he gets home," Lollia explained.

Cia nodded. Then, Lollia followed the tutor, the boy, and the girl out of the atrium.

"All these visitors! All this excitement! What are we, the Circus Maximus after a triumph?" Lollia exclaimed as the left the house.

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